Politico reports: A new rule adopted by the Democratic National Committee and NBC News will evenly divide top-tier candidates across two nights in the first Democratic presidential primary debates in June, a move to maintain viewer interest in both events by making sure well-known contenders are on stage both nights. Democrats getting at least 2 …

A new rule adopted by the Democratic National Committee and NBC News will evenly divide top-tier candidates across two nights in the first Democratic presidential primary debates in June, a move to maintain viewer interest in both events by making sure well-known contenders are on stage both nights.

Democrats getting at least 2 percent support in the polling average will be randomly and evenly split between the two nights, which will each feature 10 candidates, according to the formula obtained by POLITICO. Candidates below that threshold will also be evenly and randomly divided between the two debate lineups.

The rule says: “the final list of debate participants (after any tie-breaking procedure is executed, if necessary) will be divided into two groups: candidates with a polling average of 2% or above, and those with a polling average below 2%. Both groups will be randomly divided between Wednesday night and Thursday night thus ensuring that both groups are represented fairly on each night.”

As things stand now, eight candidates are polling higher than 2%: Joe Biden, Cory Booker, Pete Buttigieg, Kamala Harris, Amy Klobuchar, Beto O’Rourke, Bernie Sanders, and Elizabeth Warren. Under the above rule, four will appear on each of the two nights. It’s therefore possible that Biden and Bernie will not be on the same stage.

The Louisville Courier-Journal reports: Could George Takei boldly go where no man has gone before? No, not into the far reaches of space, but someplace even harder to reach: Defeating long-time Sen. Mitch McConnell for his seat in Washington. Oh my! The actor famous among Star Trek fans for his role as USS Enterprise pilot …

Could George Takei boldly go where no man has gone before? No, not into the far reaches of space, but someplace even harder to reach: Defeating long-time Sen. Mitch McConnell for his seat in Washington. Oh my!

The actor famous among Star Trek fans for his role as USS Enterprise pilot Hikaru Sulu and, more recently, well-known as a left-leaning political advocate, tweeted Thursday that he’s “tempted” to move to Kentucky just to run against the Kentucky senator and Senate Majority Leader.

Takei obviously isn’t a resident of Kentucky, but all that’s required to run for U.S. Senate is for the candidate to live in the state, so it wouldn’t take much for it to happen. McConnell is up for reelection next year.

The Biden campaign today sent an email blast promoting “Pride Gear!” now available on their website. The items include standard fare rainbow apparel in which the rainbow stripes form the “e” in Biden’s names. Other items in the same format feature the colors of the transgender pride flag. The standout swag, perhaps, is a t-shirt …

The Biden campaign today sent an email blast promoting “Pride Gear!” now available on their website. The items include standard fare rainbow apparel in which the rainbow stripes form the “e” in Biden’s names. Other items in the same format feature the colors of the transgender pride flag. The standout swag, perhaps, is a t-shirt that simply bears a trio of Biden’s trademark aviator sunglasses, but in rainbow stripes. We can expect a lot more Pride swag from the other candidates as Pride Month begins in one week.

Politico reports: Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday all but secured a spot on the Democratic presidential debate stage next month, after collecting the 65,000th individual donor of his campaign. The Democratic National Committee has given candidates two paths to get into its first primary debates in June and July: hitting the 65,000 donor mark …

Washington Gov. Jay Inslee on Friday all but secured a spot on the Democratic presidential debate stage next month, after collecting the 65,000th individual donor of his campaign.

The Democratic National Committee has given candidates two paths to get into its first primary debates in June and July: hitting the 65,000 donor mark or getting at least 1 percent support in three or more qualifying polls. Inslee, who launched his presidential campaign in March, has already passed the polling mark.

The DNC has capped participation in the first debates at 20 candidates, meaning some declared Democratic contenders will be left out. But candidates who hit both thresholds will get priority over those who only meet one, and it is extremely unlikely that more than 20 Democrats will meet both the polling and the fundraising criteria.

Politico reports: South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Thursday likened his approach to taking on President Donald Trump to dealing with a “crazy uncle.” “It’s almost like a sort of crazy uncle management,” he said. “Like, he’s there. You’re not going to disrespect his humanity. But he thinks what he thinks. There’s not much you …

South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg on Thursday likened his approach to taking on President Donald Trump to dealing with a “crazy uncle.” “It’s almost like a sort of crazy uncle management,” he said. “Like, he’s there. You’re not going to disrespect his humanity. But he thinks what he thinks. There’s not much you can do about it.”

He later added that he has a “pretty dim view” of Trump’s decision to “use his privileged status to fake a disability in order to avoid serving in Vietnam.” The president was granted five draft deferments — four for college and one for bone spurs in his heel — and never served in the military.

“This is somebody who, I think it’s fairly obvious to most of us, took advantage of the fact that he was the child of a multimillionaire in order to pretend to be disabled so that somebody could go to war in his place,” Buttigieg said.

As Buttigieg works to increase his appeal to black voters, he blasted Trump on Thursday for what he described as “the racism that is emanating from this White House.” Asked whether Trump is a racist, Buttigieg said, “I think so.”

“If you do racist things and say racist things, the question of whether that makes you a racist is almost academic,” Buttigieg said. “The problem with the president is that he does and says racist things and gives cover to other racists.”

The Reno Gazette-Journal reports: Nevada is now on the cusp of joining the nationwide push to elect the president purely by popular vote. The state Senate on Tuesday passed Assembly Bill 186, which would see the Silver State join a compact with 15 others that have agreed to award their presidential votes to the winner …

Nevada is now on the cusp of joining the nationwide push to elect the president purely by popular vote. The state Senate on Tuesday passed Assembly Bill 186, which would see the Silver State join a compact with 15 others that have agreed to award their presidential votes to the winner of the national popular vote.

If adopted by enough states, the national popular vote compact would effectively neuter the electoral college, a constitutional creation that awards states one presidential vote for each of its congressional delegates.

To succeed, proponents of the popular vote pact need to secure a majority of the nation’s 538 electoral delegates. Nevada’s six electoral votes would put them just 75 votes shy of that 270-vote goal.

Other members of the pact are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington state and the District of Columbia. The most recent addition, New Mexico, put the total at 189 electoral votes.

The agreement will go into effect only if the cumulative total of the states’ electoral votes surpasses the 270 necessary for a majority. Nevada’s six electoral votes could boost the total to 195, and similar legislation is awaiting gubernatorial consideration in Maine, which could contribute the state’s four electoral votes.

Politico reports: No candidate entered the presidential race with loftier expectations than Beto O’Rourke — or fell back so quickly afterward. Stalled at about 5 percent in national polls, Beto O’Rourke acknowledged recently that he needs to “do a better job” reaching a national audience. When he landed in Iowa this week for his fourth …

No candidate entered the presidential race with loftier expectations than Beto O’Rourke — or fell back so quickly afterward. Stalled at about 5 percent in national polls, Beto O’Rourke acknowledged recently that he needs to “do a better job” reaching a national audience. When he landed in Iowa this week for his fourth visit to the state, he was met by only a smattering of the press corps that once feasted on everything he said or did.

Yet despite all that, O’Rourke is quietly assembling a robust staff in Iowa, the first-in-the-nation caucus state. His campaign announced Monday that it’s added seven more staffers in early-voting South Carolina. He is offering more detailed policy proposals, eliciting waves of applause at a town hall meeting here Monday. Tonight, he’ll participate in a televised town hall on CNN — his first of the campaign and a big moment in his attempt to regain his charm.

From Out Magazine‘s annual LGBT Pride issue: Buttigieg is nobody’s radical, but he doesn’t quite represent the presidential status quo either. For all the ways that Buttigieg resembles the bulk of our white, male, Ivy League-educated presidents past, he stands out as a gay man — one who came out in the middle of his …

Buttigieg is nobody’s radical, but he doesn’t quite represent the presidential status quo either. For all the ways that Buttigieg resembles the bulk of our white, male, Ivy League-educated presidents past, he stands out as a gay man — one who came out in the middle of his 2015 mayoral re-election campaign and went on to win with 80 percent of the vote.

For many Americans, this lends the Indiana mayor’s presidential campaign an exciting kind of historic potential — which is not lost on him.

“Equality, to me, looks like a world where [a gay presidential candidate is] not newsworthy,” Buttigieg tells me. “But I get that it is. I understand the importance and the sort of historic quality that could be attached to [my campaign] and the change that it represents.”

Fox News reports: Mayor Pete Buttigieg is the “most impressive… candidate” in terms of political talent in the current 2020 Democratic presidential field, Brit Hume said, comparing the South Bend, Ind. mayor’s rise in popularity to the “emergence of Barack Obama.” “I think Pete Buttigieg is the most impressive, by far, candidate in terms of …

Mayor Pete Buttigieg is the “most impressive… candidate” in terms of political talent in the current 2020 Democratic presidential field, Brit Hume said, comparing the South Bend, Ind. mayor’s rise in popularity to the “emergence of Barack Obama.”

“I think Pete Buttigieg is the most impressive, by far, candidate in terms of just raw political talent in the Democratic field,” Hume said Monday on “Special Report.”

“And, he may be the most impressive candidate I’ve seen since the emergence of Barack Obama,” Hume, Fox News’ senior political analyst, said. “He seems comfortable on the big stage — articulate, even humorous,” he added.

The comments about Buttigieg come a day after Hume fired back at President Donald Trump, who questioned Fox News for even hosting the Democrat. Trump said the network was “wasting airtime” and “moving more and more to the losing (wrong) side in covering the Dems.” Hume hit back on Twitter.

Say this for Buttigieg. He’s willing to be questioned by Chris Wallace, something you’ve barely done since you’ve been president. Oh, and covering candidates of both parties is part of the job of a news channel. https://t.co/D8yQE2kfYF

Chris Wallace not the only one at Fox impressed by @PeteButtigieg. Here is @brithume lavishing praise on the mayor: “most impressive, by far, candidate, in terms of just raw political talent in the Dem field.” Hasn’t seen anyone like it “since the emergence of Barack Obama.” pic.twitter.com/ZM8IDrJob6

The Hill reports: There is growing buzz that Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) will leave the Republican Party to mount a challenge against President Trump as the Libertarian Party’s presidential candidate. That could have major implications for Amash’s home state of Michigan, which Trump carried by fewer than 11,000 votes in 2016. Amash, a former attorney …

There is growing buzz that Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) will leave the Republican Party to mount a challenge against President Trump as the Libertarian Party’s presidential candidate. That could have major implications for Amash’s home state of Michigan, which Trump carried by fewer than 11,000 votes in 2016.

Amash, a former attorney who was first elected to Congress during the 2010 Tea Party wave, has thrust himself into the spotlight by becoming the first Republican in the House to support impeachment proceedings for Trump based on special counsel Robert Mueller’s findings.

Trump and his allies swiftly fired back, casting Amash as an irrelevant political opportunist who has steadfastly refused to back the GOP agenda in Congress. The president called Amash a “total lightweight” over Twitter, saying, “Justin is a loser who sadly plays right into our opponents’ hands.”

Via email from the Buttigieg campaign: There’s been a lot of debate recently about whether Democratic presidential candidates should go on Fox News. Tomorrow night [tonight], I’ll be participating in a Fox News town hall with Chris Wallace, and I want to tell you why. First, let me be clear: I strongly condemn the voices …

There’s been a lot of debate recently about whether Democratic presidential candidates should go on Fox News. Tomorrow night [tonight], I’ll be participating in a Fox News town hall with Chris Wallace, and I want to tell you why.

First, let me be clear: I strongly condemn the voices on Fox and in the media that uncritically amplify hate and the divisive sort of politics that gave rise to this presidency. Their goal is to spread fear and lies, not serve as honest brokers with the American people.

But just because many of these opinion hosts don’t operate in good faith, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t Fox viewers tuning in in good faith. If we unilaterally decide that they shouldn’t hear my or other Democrats’ messages, then we shouldn’t act surprised if they have a distorted view of what we believe and who we are.

If we ignore the viewers of Fox News and every news platform that doesn’t share our worldview, we will surrender our ability to speak directly to millions of American voters. If we don’t show up, the conservative media will tell our side of the story for us. They will continue to fully claim American values like freedom, security, and democracy as property of the GOP.

From the beginning of this campaign, I’ve said that I would meet voters where they are. And that means sometimes moving beyond the echo chamber of like-minded voices. Because this primary season is not just about winning the Democratic nomination, or even just winning in 2020—it’s about reclaiming our values and winning an era.

During a town hall in Iowa City, Mayor Pete Buttigieg went beyond his normal campaign talking points to give an 11-year-old advice on how to deal with bullying. In a swipe at President Trump, Mayor Pete said it also matters that “we have a president that doesn’t show that type of behavior.”

Buttigieg drew 11-year-old Rebecca Johanns’ question from a fishbowl. Johanns later told ABC News that she has been bullied and wanted to hear from the mayor about how to handle it.

“The person who’s bullying you probably has something a little broken in them,” he added. They want to get a response out of you. When you show that it doesn’t get to you… they’re going to follow your lead,” he said.

CBS News reports: Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders unveiled his education policy plan on Saturday — a comprehensive 10-point agenda that calls for the end of for-profit charter schools, creates a salary floor for public school teachers, guarantees free school meals for all students and expands after school and summer school programs. The 2020 hopeful’s policy …

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders unveiled his education policy plan on Saturday — a comprehensive 10-point agenda that calls for the end of for-profit charter schools, creates a salary floor for public school teachers, guarantees free school meals for all students and expands after school and summer school programs.

The 2020 hopeful’s policy proposal adds to the already robust debate in the Democratic primary regarding education, but like many Sanders proposals, comes with many promises but few specifics as to how it will be paid for.

Sanders argued that education is a social justice issue. He promised to combat racial discrimination and school segregation by tripling Title 1 funding and executing desegregation orders.

Some of Sanders’ opponents, like Sen. Cory Booker, have been forceful advocates for expanding charters.

The Vermont senator outlined the plan on Saturday morning at Life Cathedral Church in Orangeburg, South Carolina, a key early-voting state in next year’s Democratic primary, which rests heavily on black voters. In 2016, Sanders lost the primary here to Hillary Clinton by 47.5%.

His town hall is the fourth stop in a four-day, four-state swing through North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama, where he will highlight policy on education and environmental justice.

New: @BernieSanders is unveiling a massive education plan today:-Ban on for-profit charter schools-Teacher pay at no less than $60k-Universal free school meals-Tripling Title I funding-$5B to expand after school programshttps://t.co/EvOyYC7yxN

Betsy DeVos is the worst Secretary of Education in the modern history of our country. We need an Education Secretary who is a fierce advocate for public education and working class children and works to integrate our schools—not who is doing everything she can to undermine them.

Politico reports: New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio acknowledged Friday he may not qualify for the first presidential debate next month, but argued that isn’t a telltale sign about his overall chances of winning the Democratic nomination. As he kicked off his campaign here in the nation’s first presidential selection state, the mayor said …

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio acknowledged Friday he may not qualify for the first presidential debate next month, but argued that isn’t a telltale sign about his overall chances of winning the Democratic nomination.

As he kicked off his campaign here in the nation’s first presidential selection state, the mayor said he has achieved one debate stage requirement: securing at least 1 percent in three polls. But given the size of the Democratic field, which now totals 23 candidates, he may also need to raise contributions from 65,000 individual donors.

De Blasio opened a federal campaign account Thursday. Per election rules, he cannot transfer any of the money he had been raising since last fall for the state and federal political action committees he set up as he mulled a White House bid.

Fox News reports: The South Bend, Indiana mayor – a one-time long-shot for the nomination whose surge over the past two months has made him a legitimate contender for the Democratic nomination – drew attention to Trump’s payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who claims she had an affair with Trump. “I’m old enough …

The South Bend, Indiana mayor – a one-time long-shot for the nomination whose surge over the past two months has made him a legitimate contender for the Democratic nomination – drew attention to Trump’s payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels, who claims she had an affair with Trump. “I’m old enough to remember when Republicans talked a lot about character in the Oval Office,” Buttigieg said in an interview with Fox News.

“And I’m a little bit puzzled that some leading figures on the religious right can look at somebody who has the track record that this president has on everything from the boasting about sexual misconduct to the payoff to somebody he’s having an affair and believe that that person ought to be the moral as well as the political leader of this nation. To put it mildly it seems inconsistent,” the mayor said.

CNN reports: Joe Biden supports decriminalizing marijuana, a Biden campaign spokesman told CNN, but the former vice president isn’t going as far as calling for the drug to be legalized on the federal level. “Nobody should be in jail for smoking marijuana,” Biden told voters at a Tuesday house party in Nashua, New Hampshire. Asked …

Joe Biden supports decriminalizing marijuana, a Biden campaign spokesman told CNN, but the former vice president isn’t going as far as calling for the drug to be legalized on the federal level. “Nobody should be in jail for smoking marijuana,” Biden told voters at a Tuesday house party in Nashua, New Hampshire.

Asked by CNN if the former vice president supports legalizing marijuana, Andrew Bates, a Biden campaign spokesman, said Biden believes the drug should be decriminalized and that decisions on legalization should continue on the state level.

“He would allow states to continue to make their own choices regarding legalization and would seek to make it easier to conduct research on marijuana’s positive and negative health impacts by rescheduling it as a schedule 2 drug,” he added.

The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York, which represents active and retired NYPD officers, this morning issued the below statement: It is laughable that a mayor who has shown no interest in running New York City for six years now says he wants to mismanage the entire country. While the mayor of …

The Police Benevolent Association of the City of New York, which represents active and retired NYPD officers, this morning issued the below statement:

It is laughable that a mayor who has shown no interest in running New York City for six years now says he wants to mismanage the entire country.

While the mayor of our nation’s largest city is busy running around Iowa and getting upstaged by the mayor of South Bend, Indiana, there are real problems here at home.

New York City Police officers are continuing to suffer with wages 30% below market rate because the mayor has totally checked out of our contract process.

After six years of disrespect for the police officers who keep our city safe, it’s perfectly clear how the mayor treats men and women in uniform. As commander-in-chief, he would be an unmitigated disaster.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports: Former Vice President Joe Biden is choosing Philadelphia to base his 2020 presidential campaign, opting for his native Pennsylvania over the state of Delaware that sent him to the Senate for 36 years. The choice is both practical and symbolic for Biden. Philadelphia is convenient to his homes in Wilmington, Delaware, …

Former Vice President Joe Biden is choosing Philadelphia to base his 2020 presidential campaign, opting for his native Pennsylvania over the state of Delaware that sent him to the Senate for 36 years.

The choice is both practical and symbolic for Biden. Philadelphia is convenient to his homes in Wilmington, Delaware, and northern Virginia.

The site of the nation’s founding also highlights Biden’s campaign promise to “restore the soul of this nation” as he casts President Donald Trump as a threat to U.S. values. Pennsylvania was one of the key states that Trump flipped in 2016.

ABC News reports: New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has released a video on YouTube announcing his campaign for president, which will be followed by an appearance on “Good Morning America” Thursday morning. De Blasio, who is in his second term, joins a crowded field of nearly two dozen Democrats seeking to move into the …

New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has released a video on YouTube announcing his campaign for president, which will be followed by an appearance on “Good Morning America” Thursday morning.

De Blasio, who is in his second term, joins a crowded field of nearly two dozen Democrats seeking to move into the White House. The central theme of de Blasio’s campaign will be “working people first.”

De Blasio has a history with several prominent Democrats very familiar with presidential runs. He was the campaign manager for Hillary Clinton’s Senate campaign in 2000 and was sworn into office for his first term as mayor by Bill Clinton. Earlier this year, he was sworn in to his second term by Sen. Bernie Sanders.

It’s official…New York Mayor Bill de Blasio is running for President of the United States.

Reuters reports: Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has expanded his lead over a wide field of candidates for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination by 5 percentage points since he entered the race in late April, according to a monthly Reuters/Ipsos poll. The poll released on Wednesday found 29% of Democrats and independents said they …

Former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden has expanded his lead over a wide field of candidates for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination by 5 percentage points since he entered the race in late April, according to a monthly Reuters/Ipsos poll.

The poll released on Wednesday found 29% of Democrats and independents said they would vote for Biden in the state nominating contests that begin next year. That is up from 24% who said so in a poll that ran in late April, days before Biden announced his bid.

Biden led the field among all major demographic groups except millennials (ages 18-37), who favored U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont over Biden 18% to 16%. Besides Biden, 13% of Democrats and independents said they would vote for Sanders. None of the other candidates received more than 6% support in the poll.

The Associated Press reports: On his first trip to Russia as U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo warned his Russian counterpart against any “unacceptable” Russian meddling in U.S. elections. At a news conference following three hours of meetings Tuesday, Pompeo said he told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that any such action by the Russians …

On his first trip to Russia as U.S. Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo warned his Russian counterpart against any “unacceptable” Russian meddling in U.S. elections.

At a news conference following three hours of meetings Tuesday, Pompeo said he told Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov that any such action by the Russians in the 2020 elections “would put our relationship in an even worse place than it has been.”

Pompeo said there are “truly overlapping interests” that the two countries “can build on, and most importantly, President Trump very much wants to do that.”